Poultry blood testing equipment



Aug. '11, 1959 B. K. MESSERSMITH POULTRY BLOOD TESTING EQUIPMENT 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 13, 1958 FIG.

-INVENTOR 7 Benjamin K. Messersm/fh ATTORNEY Aug. 11, 1959 B. K. MESSERSMITH 2,898,884

POULTRY BLOOD TESTING EQUIPMENT Filed Jan. 13, 1958 FIG. 2

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Benjamin K. Messersm/Yh ATTORNEY United States Patent"'Ofiice 2,898,884 Patented Aug. 11, 1959 POULTRY BLOOD TESTING EQUIPMENTBenjamin K. Messersmith, Trenton, NJ.

Application January 13, 1958, Serial No. 708,488

3 Claims. (Cl. 119-17) This invention relates to a device for treatingpoultry, and it particularly relates to a device for temporarilyrestraining the fowl until the proper blood tests have been completed.

Heretofore, when it was necessary to test poultry for pullorum disease,fowl typhoid, etc., it was the usual practice for the person conductingthe test to grasp a fowl, prick one of its veins wtih a knife to drawblood, open the lid of a crate and thrust the fowl into the crate afterwhich the lid had to be closed and the fowl retained in the crate untilthe blood had been tested. Then the fowl could either be released orisolated. This required a great deal of handling, much waste motion andwas, all in all, a highly ineflicient procedure.

In order to perform the job more efficiently and more quickly andeasily, various types of fowl holding means have been developed. Theseholding devices have taken various forms of which the more popular onesconstitute a wheel horizontally rotatable on an upstanding post, thewheel having a series of annularly-arranged fastening means for securingthe legs of a fowl thereto; a modification of the wheel structurewherein the wheel is replaced by a rotatable, collapsible framework; andan elongated table having means for securing a series of fowlsideby-side thereon. However, all these devices necessitated a completetesting of all the fowl before any could be released, thereby causing agreat waste of time between the treatment of each group of fowl. Thiswaste of time was increased by the fact that each fowl had to beseparately secured in place before the treatment and then separatelyreleased after the treatment. In addition, the struggles of the fowlduring fastening or while dangling from the fastening means often causedbreaking of legs, wings, etc.

It is one object of the present invention to overcome the above as wellas other disadvantages of the prior developments by providing a devicewhich retains the fowl after blood-letting and during the reactionperiod without hindrance to freedom of movement of the fowl.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a retaining devicefor fowl which is capable of receiving and retaining the fowl afterblood-letting without the necessity for the operator to put down hisknife so that he may perform a continuous operation as long as he sodesires.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a retaining devicefor fowl which can eifect a release of some fowl while others areretained pending completion of the reaction period.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a retaining devicefor fowl which is portable and adjustable so that it may be packed upand moved from one testing area to another in an easy and effectivemanner, and so that it can be adjusted to suit the physical requirementsof the testers.

' Other objects of the present invention are to provide an improvedretaining device, of the character described,

that is easily and economically produced, which is sturdy inconstruction, and which is highly eflicient in operation.

With the above and related objects in view, this invention consists inthe details of construction and combination of parts, as will be morefully understood from the following description, when read inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a top perspective View of an assembled device embodying thepresent invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the device of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 33 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a perspective View of the type clamp used to fasten the frontportion of the device in place.

Fig. 5 is an exploded, perspective view of the support post means. 7

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the separator wall.

Fig. 7 is a perspective viewof the type bracket used to secure the testbox in place.

Referring now in greater detail to the drawings wherein similarreference characters refer to similar parts, there is shown a retainingcage, generally designated 10, which comprises a hardwood board 12 ofgenerally elongated, rectangular shape. At each of the four corners ofthe board 12 is secured a head 14 of iron, steel or thelike. Each head14 (best shown in Fig. 5) is generally circular in shape except for onestraight, cut-off edge 16. The heads 14 are each placed on theundersurface of the board 12, in their respective corners, with thestraight edge 16 corresponding with the adjacent edge of the board sothat the head 14 does not project beyond the edge of the board. Theheads 14 are then secured to the board by bolts, screws, or the like,which pass through holes 18 in the heads. The heads 14 also each have adepending, internally-threaded socket portion 20 to threadedly receivethe externally-threaded end portion 22 of a supporting post 24.

At the rear edge of the board 12 is hinged a separator wall 26 of wiremesh. A chain 28 is connected to the front edge of the separator 26 andthis chain is adapted to bepulledthrough an opening 30 at the center ofthe rear edge of the board 12. When the chain 28 is pulled throughopening 30 and a link inserted in spread opened ends of cotter pin32.,the chain is held in a position wherein it has pulled the separator26 up into surface-tosurface contact with the underside of board 12 andretains the separator 26 in that position.

Also connected to the rear edge of board 12 is a horizontal wire meshpanel 34; this panel 34 being connected to the rear edge of board 12 byhooks 36' which are screwed into the rear edge of board 12 andreleasably and hingedly engage the front wire 38 of panel 34. This frontwire 38 is of heavy gauge and extends slightly beyond each end of thepanel 34. A similar heavy gauge reinforcing wire 40 isprovided at therear edge of panel 34 and there are reinforcing heavy gauge wires 42provided at each end of the panel 34 so that the panel 34 is providedwith a complete peripheral frame of heavy gauge reinforcing wire.

Connected to the rear and sides of panel 34 is a rear wire mesh panel(not shown) integral with side wire mesh panels 44. The top panel 34 ishinged to the top edge of the rear panel (not shown) and is releasablyconnected to the side panels 44 by snap fasteners 45 which snap aroundthe end reinforcing wires 42 of the'top panel 34.

The entire assemblyconsisting of top panel 34, the rear panel (notshown) hinged thereto, and the side panels 44 integral with the rearpanel and releasably C0111- nected to. the top panel .34, forms a rearenclosure section generally designated 46. This rear enclosure section,46 is hingedly movable up and away from the ground around the pivotsformed by the books 36 extending from the rear edge of board 12.

When the rear enclosure section 46 is in position on the ground, it maybe opened by means of a door 48 hinged to the rear wire 40, byhingerings 50 and covering a corresponding opening in the top panel 34.

The front portion of the cage is formed by a wire -mesh front panel 52having an outwardly-bowed portion 54 at one end and integral with sideportions 56. The side portions 56 Wrap around the corresponding frontand rear posts 24 (as best shown in Fig. l) and are secured in positionby clips 58 which encompass the rear posts 24 by means of ring portions60 and hook around and down through the wire mesh structure of the sideportions 56 by means of hook portions 62 on the clips 58.

At the front of the cage 10, adjacent that end of front panel 52 whichis opposite the bowed portion 54, there is provided a test box 64. Thetest box is of a common type used to test the blood of the fowl, andcontains the usual scalpel, wire loop for lifting blood from the wing ofthe bird, Antigen, test plates and so forth, and includes a top workingsurface for supporting the test plates when Antigen is dropped on ablood sample for testing the reaction of the blood, and has thereforebeen only generally illustrated. If the tested blood sample clumps orcoagulates on the test plate, after stirring, a positive reaction isindicated, and the diseased bird should be removed from the cage andsegregated from the flock. The test box 64 is mounted for verticaladjustment by means of a post 66 extending up from the ground and areleasable clamp 68 extending from the front of the box 64. The clamp 68is provided with a pair of bolts 70 held in clamping positions by wingnuts 72. When the nuts 72 are loosened, the clamp 68 is slidably movablevertically along the post 66 and when it reaches the desired position ofadjustment, the nuts 72 are tightened to hold it in place. The rear ofthe box 64 is adjustably connected to a bracket 74 having a curved end76 provided with a hole 78 through which is hooked a hook 80 extendingfrom the front edge of board 12. The body of the bracket 74 is providedwith an elongated vertical slot 82 through which extends a bolt 84connected to the box 64. The bolt 84 is movable, with the box 64,longitudinally of slot 82 and is retained in adjusted position bytightening of wing nut 86. Consequently, when the box 64 is to bevertically adjusted, the Wing nuts 72 and 86 are loosened, the box isthen slid to the desired position and the nuts 72 and 86 are tightenedto retain it in this adjusted position with the clamp 68 and post 66supporting it at one side and with cage 10 and bracket 74 supporting itat the opposite side.

In operation, two men generally use the device, one being the bleederwho wields the knife to cut the fowl, and the other being the tester whoreceives the blood from the bleeder and tests it in the test box 64. Inthe actual operation, the bleeder seated on board 12, adjacent the bowedportion 54, grasps a selected fowl by the two wings, lays the bird onhis left knee, and with a knife held in his right hand, sticks theproper wing vein. After the tester, seated adjacent the box 64 on board12, secures a drop of blood, the bleeder drops the bird through thebleeders legsinto the opening 88 at the top of bowed portion '54. When acertain number of birds have been dropped into the cage 10, the chain 28is released and the separator 26 is dropped into vertical position. Thiscuts of a number of treated birds in the rear portion of the cage andleaves the front portion of the cage only available to the next fewbirds dropped through opening 88. Meanwhile, the tester has tested thepreviously treated birds now in the rear portion of the cage. If thereare no reactors in this group, the rear enclosure section 46 is hingedlypulled up and the fowl are permitted to escape from underneath it. Ifthere are any reactors, they are first pulled up through open doorway 48before the entire rear unit'is pulled up, and these reactors are placedin a separate coop. The separator 26 is then raised to permit the fowlfrom the front of the cage to enter the rear and the process isrepeated. In this manner, an additional number of birds can be prickedand samples of blood taken while the blood of the other birds isundergoing reaction in the box 64 without stopping the entire process toawait completion of the tests on the first group of birds. Considerabletime is saved in this manner.

When the testing procedure is 'finished, the apparatus can bedisinfected, the various clamps, catches, books, etc. released, and thevarious parts disassembled and collapsed into a compact unit formovement to another testing site.

The device can be adapted for use by either right or left hand workersmerely by reversing the position of the front panel 52 so that the bowedportion 54 is at the right hand side, as viewed in Fig. 1, and the box64 is at the left.

If labor is in short supply, it is possible for one man instead of twoto use the device because the opening 88 and box 64 are sufiicientlyclose to be reached by one man and because it is easy for one man tomanipulate the hinged rear portion 46.

Although this invention has been described in considerable detail, suchdescription is intended as being illustrative rather than limiting,since the invention may be variously embodied, and the scope of theinvention is to be determined as claimed.

Having thus set forth and disclosed the nature of this invention, whatis claimed is:

l. A poultry testing device comprising a flat rectangular board having afront edge and a rear edge, posts at the corners of said boardsupporting the same in spaced relation to a supporting surface, ahorizontal wire grid panel hingedly secured to the rear edge of saidboard, a wire grid rear panel and wire grid side panels depending fromsaid horizontal panel to form a swingable open bottomed enclosure, wiregrid side panels extending from the ends of said board, a front endpanel including an outwardly bowed end section having an open topsecured to the front edge of said board, an openable hinged grid sectionin said horizontal panel and a swingable partition dependingly supportedadjacent the rear edge of said board.

2. A poultry testing device comprising a fiat rectangular board having afront edge and a rear edge, posts at the corners of said boardsupporting the same in spaced relation to a supporting surface, ahorizontal wire grid panel hingedly secured to the rear edge of saidboard, a wire grid rear panel and wire grid side panels depending fromsaid horizontal panel to form a swingable open bottomed enclosure, wiregrid side panels extending from the ends of said board, a front endpanel including an outwardly bowed end section having an open topsecured to the front edge of said board, an openable hinged grid sectionin said horizontal panel, a swingable partition dependingly supportedadjacent the rear edge of said board, said rear edge of said boardhaving a slot therein, a chain connected to said partition extendingthrough said slot and means on the top of said board for securing saidchain to retain said partition in a desired position of adjustment.

3. A poultry testing device comprising a flat rectangular board having afront edge and a rear edge, posts at the corners of said boardsupporting the same in spaced relation to a supporting surface, ahorizontal wire grid panel hingedly secured to the rear edge of saidboard, a wire grid rear panel and Wire grid side panels depending fromsaid horizontal panel to form a swingable open bottomed enclosure, wiregrid side panels extending from the ends of said board, a front endpanel including an outwardly bowed end section having an open topsecured to the front edge of said board, an openable hinged grid sectionin said horizontal panel, a swingable partition dependingly supportedadjacent the rear edge of said board, said rear edge of said boardhaving a slot therein, a chain connected to said partition extendingthrough said slot, means on the top of said board for securing saidchain to retain said partition in a desired position of adjustment, anadditional post adjacent said front edge of said board, a receptaclemounted for vertical adjustment on said last mentioned box, hooks on thefront edge of said board, and brackets adjustably carried by saidreceptacle engaging said hooks to retain said receptacle in juxtaposedrelation with said board.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS GehretJune 21, 1938 Bate Apr. 4, 1944 Smith Nov. 13, 1951 Kniesteadt June 15,1954 Hobbs Nov. 19, 1957

